Magic: The Gathering (Unreleased Sets)

I liked the way Tezzeret kept killing Nicol Bolas' messenger imps in the comics until Nicol Bolas decided to deliver a message in person.

Tezzeret: Run out of imps?

Tezzeret's an asshole but you gotta admit it takes nerves of steel (or etherium as the case may be) to snark at an evil Elder Dragon.

Edited by M84 on Jan 28th 2022 at 1:57:09 AM

Dovin Baan game me Phyrexian vibes when first read him in the stories. I wonder if he'll even replace Jin after seeing flaws in his designs.

Problem is Dovin's dead on account of the schemes of one Lazav - who seems to have some dealings going on with Tezzeret.

Man, Tezzy's showing up everywhere these days.

He's dead? I somehow completely missed that!

After the War of the Spark, Ravnica sent planeswalker assassins after three of the planeswalkers who had served Bolas. Kaya found Liliana but spared her (taking the chain veil back as "proof"), Ral is still hunting Tezzeret, and Vraska successfully caught and eliminated Dovin.

EDIT: Looking it up, it seems that Vraska also tried to spare Dovin, but he escaped the fight only to get killed by Rat's hidden assassin personality.

Edited by Durazno on Jan 29th 2022 at 9:49:57 AM

Not how I was expecting them to promote Kamigawa Neon Dynasty, though it definitely feels like it fits.

Here's a Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty side story:

The Blade Reflected and Reborn, by Emma Mieko Candon

Update: Here's another.

The Epoch Engine, by Grace Chan

Edited by Lightblade on Feb 8th 2022 at 6:23:00 AM

Love the side stories. First classical self-hatred destroying relations, second Evangelion + Dark Souls.

Man, that toad riding guy is a jerk. Yeah, being rejected stings, but genocide is kind of an overreaction.

Edited by M84 on Feb 8th 2022 at 10:26:38 PM

Just as a note, they messed up and printed the RG Commander deck with an extra copy of Mossfire Valley instead of a basic land, so it'll need a little tweaking before it's actually legal to run in Commander.

Also the outcome of the second story was expected. Of course shoving a powerful kami into a Humongous Mecha would backfire.

And here's today's side story:

The Foes Who Make Us, by Abbey Mei Otis

The Legends of Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty

Also, the set's main product page has a manga for the set, a condensed retelling of the set's main story. That was interesting, and I wouldn't mind seeing something like that for other sets.

After doing a Kamigawa tourney, I finally caved and got Arena thanks to the tidy code that I got for attending.

Laura Bailey is Chandra's voice actress? That's... a surprising sound for her.

Anywho, I am loving Kamigawa. I really like Innistrad as a setting - the first Innistrad set around a decade ago was what got me from "I played Magic once or twice as a kid" into "I play Magic semi-regularly as an adult," so it's always going to have a soft spot with me - but I really like playing around with Kamigawa's mechanics far more than dealing with Crimson Vow and Midnight Hunt's mechanics.

I don't think I've ever played a magic set that stuck with me both in setting and in mechanics before. Usually its one or the other.

Edited by KnownUnknown on Feb 15th 2022 at 9:15:10 AM

Overall I'm extremely pleased with Neon Dynasty. It managed to get a few people I know interested in the original cycle, so that's heartwarming.

I'm getting Boseiju, Takenuma, and 2 Otawaras.

I'm quite pleased with this Legendary Land cycle. They seem to pair exquisitely well with Life From the Loam.

What little has been revealed of Capenna looks dope. White-aligned demon lawyer doomsday cultists.

We've got Streets of New Capenna stories; the first episode of the main story, as well as a side story.

Episode 1: Homecoming, by Elise Kova

The Contract Breaker, by Tobias S. Buckell

And here's some more stories today:

Episode 2: Dirty Laundry, by Elise Kova

What You Expect To See, by Kaitlyn Zivanovich

UPDATE: Here's Wednesday's stories.

Episode 3: Tests, by Elise Kova

The Side of Freedom, by Elise Kova

With both a main and a side story every day this week, it's been hard for me to find time to read them all.

Edited by Lightblade on Mar 30th 2022 at 6:31:47 AM

Still more Streets of New Capenna stories:

Episode 4: The Font, by Elise Kova

The Family Man, by K. Arsenault Rivera

I think it's neat how this sets side stories are more closely tied to the main one while still being understandable on their own.

UPDATE: And finally,

Episode 5: Hymn of the Angels, by Elise Kova

Alley Cat Blues, by Rhiannon Rasmussen

Edited by Lightblade on Apr 5th 2022 at 6:41:18 AM

We've got our first Dominaria United story episode up today.

Episode 1: Echoes in the Dark, by Langley Hyde

Next chapter is up, though I can't find the official summary blurb: Sand in the Hourglass.

We get to see Phyrexian sleeper agents in all of their Thingly glory, and Ajani ends the chapter conspicuously separated from Karn and company.

Unrelatedly, if liver cirrhosis sounds like a fun thing to have, go to Maro's blog and take a shot whenever someone in an ask is mad about the prospect of someone stickering their cards without permission even though the sticker rules literally do not permit people to do that (you can only sticker cards you own).

And here's Episode 3: The Locked Tower

... In which the gang play Among Us.

We also have a side story today, that I will read a little later.

Homecoming, by Seanan McGuire

The side-story finally confirmed one thing.

Namely, the Raven Man's identity. He's Lim-Dûl.